Khalil: An Exceptional Formula Reached to Pay Salaries of Military

An agreement has been reached on Monday on the controversial salaries of military officials and the personnel will be paid finally after some delay in receiving their payments.

“An exceptional but legal formula has been reached to pay the salaries of the military officials,” said Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil.

“We are keen on implementing the law and we must contribute to the preservation of the legal and constitutional rules,” he added after a meeting with Defense Minister Samir Moqbel and Army Commander Gen. Jean Qahwaji.

Moqbel had criticized earlier how officials are handling the issue of delayed wages of military officials, revealing that a solution has been reached over the matter.

Moqbel had said after holding talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam that: “A solution has been reached and God willing at the end of the day, military officials would have been paid.”

He did not give further details.

He credited Salam with devising a solution to the crisis, saying that he “acted with great patience and studied the issue objectively until we reached a positive conclusion.”

He also thanked Khalil for his efforts.

“The army is the guarantor of stability and security for the country,” stressed Moqbel.

“I hope politicians and the media would not meddle in military affairs and allow the army to perform its duties,” he stated.

The military have not received their salaries for the month of October which drew the ire of the army.

Lebanon has been without a head of state since President Michel Suleiman's six-year term ended in May last year.

The Baabda Palace vacuum has caused the parliament's paralysis and huge differences among cabinet members.

The government assumed the responsibilities of the head of state in his absence but sharp differences have stopped it short of taking important decisions.